| Flower Petal
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Useful
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Herb |
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Veronica
Genus |
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| Other Names for this Plant |
Persian Speedwell, large field speedwell, bird's-eye, or winter speedwell
Native to Eurasia. Spread thoughout the USA and Asia
The seed leaves are broadly triangular cotyledons, with truncated base. The short-stalked leaves are broadly ovate (1-2 cm), having coarsely serrated margins. V. persica has weak stems that form a dense, prostrate ground cover. Tips of stems are often ascending. Leaves on the lower stems are paired, but are alternate on the upper portion of the stem. The short-petioled leaves are longer than they are broad and coarsely toothed.
The flowers (8-11 mm wide) are sky-blue with dark stripes and a white center, and they are zygomorphic (they only have one plane of symmetry, which is vertical). They are solitary on long, slender, hairy stalks in the leaf axils.
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Compare Species
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Tounge Order (Mints) |
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Main, Real, Two First-Leaves (Dicots) |
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Real, Two First-Leaves (Dicots) |
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Half Capsule Seed Division |
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Magnolia Division |
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Seed Plants |
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Multiple Spore Sub-Kingdom |
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Multicellular Land Plants |
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Cells with a Nucleus |
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The genus name Veronica is of apparent unknown derivation. It may refer to Saint Veronica of Christian beliefs. Oddly enough, there may not even be an actual person attached to that title. The name "veronica" comes from the Latin "ver(a) icon" or "true image". St. Veronica was believed to have wiped the face of Christ before his crucifixion. The image of Christ's face was supposedly transferred to the towel. The name "veronica" is a bastardization of the Latin term which was assigned to the person with the image instead of the image itself. The species epithet "persica" is the Latin word for a peach. It is unknown why the plant was assigned this name
Common field-speedwell is a decumbent annual weed recorded on cultivated land throughout the UK. Introduced and first recorded in 1825 it was probably dispersed with clover and other crop seeds. By 1870 it was described as pretty frequent in England. Within 50 years it became not only the commonest speedwell but also one of the commonest annual weeds. A frequent colonist in cereals and in sugar beet, common field-speedwell is found on all types of cultivated soils. It prefers nutrient-rich loams of pH 6.0 to 8.0. It is not recorded above 1,000 ft in Britain.
Medicinal Uses: Clears sinus congestion. Eases eye soreness and helps eyesight. Goes to areas of tension, specifically the neck and shoulder areas and relaxes the muscles.
Birdseye Speedwell
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| Comment:
Birdseye Speedwell, Veronica persica |
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Birdseye Speedwell on:
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